New TV Crime Dramas 2015 - CrimeTimePreview CrimeTimePreview You are here: Home / New TV Crime Dramas 2015 New TV Crime Dramas 2015 23/11/2014 by robinjarossi 1 Comment THIS IS the fifth time I have previewed forthcoming crime dramas for the year ahead, and it must be the most exciting yet. The BBC, ITV, C4 and BSkyB have commissioned a fantastic range of genuinely exciting new dramas with terrific actors – from thrillers such as Safe House with Christopher Eccleston and the character-driven series The Trials of Jimmy Rose with Ray Winstone, to outlandish grippers like The Chronicles of Frankenstein with Sean Bean. In addition, some brilliant dramas will be back – Broadchurch included, while old faves Vera, Endeavour, Foyle’s War and DCI Banks have also lined up new mysteries.

Let the crimewave begin… Stanley Tucci, Sofie Gråbøl and Christopher Eccleston in Fortitude Fortitude, Sky Atlantic Sofie Gråbøl, Stanley Tucci, Michael Gambon, Richard Dormer, Christopher Eccleston, Luke Treadaway, Jessica Raine Here’s a major new drama from Sky Atlantic that has plenty of wow factor. A blockbuster cast, an amazing setting and a compelling crime premise. A town like nowhere else, Fortitude is surrounded by the savage beauty of the Arctic landscape in the northernmost part of Norway, and there has never been a violent crime here. Until now. When a prominent member of the community is brutally murdered, Sheriff Dan Anderssen (Richard Dormer) leads the investigation, but is disturbed by the arrival of a detective from London, Eugene Morton (Stanley Tucci), who is also there to conduct inquiries into the death. The town’s governor, Hildur Odegard (Sofie Gråbøl), meanwhile, tries to protect her tourism plans from being disrupted by the horror that has taken place… From Simon Donald, creator of the gritty Low Winter Sun.

January 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★½ Code of a Killer ITV David Threlfall, John Simm Two top actors join what could be one of the most riveting true-life dramas of the year. Code of a Killer is based on the extraordinary true story of Alec Jeffreys’ discovery of DNA fingerprinting and its first use by Detective Chief Superintendent David Baker in catching a double murderer. David Threlfall plays David Baker, who between 1983 and 1987 headed the investigation into the murders of two Leicestershire schoolgirls, Lynda Mann and Dawn Ashworth. Only a few miles away, Dr Alec Jeffreys, played by John Simm, was a scientist at Leicester University who, in September 1984, invented a remarkable technique to read each individual’s unique DNA fingerprint. When a local teenager admitted to one of the murders but not the other, Baker asked Jeffreys to analyse the DNA evidence left at the crime scenes. Both men were shocked to discover that the teenager was innocent, his confession false.

DCS Baker then took the brave step to launch the world’s first-ever DNA manhunt, testing more than 5000 local men to track down the killer. 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★½ The cast of Broadchurch 2 in rehearsal Broadchurch, ITV David Tennant, Oliva Colman, Jodie Whittaker, Andrew Buchan, Arthur Darvill, Charlotte Rampling The teaser trailers are already running on ITV. In the first, David Tennant’s character says: ‘There was a boy, and he was killed. I caught the killer. So why am I still here?’ In the second, Oliva Colman asks another question: ‘There was a boy, and he was killed. What happened then destroyed my family, my job, and my town. So what do I do now?’ Somehow, David Tennant has managed to fit in filming a US version of this hugely talked-about drama while also making Broadchurch 2 for ITV. So, back to those questions. Just how will writer Chris Chibnall follow up the brilliant – and conclusive – first series? And what role will Charlotte Rampling play in proceedings?

January 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★½ The Frankenstein Chronicles, ITV Sean Bean OK, I know Frankenstein is a horror yarn, but this six-parter gives it a new twist as a crime mystery. At its centre is Inspector John Marlott, played by Game of Thrones‘ Sean Bean, who goes on a terrifying journey in pursuit of… well, you can probably guess. Set in 1827 in London, it opens with Home Secretary Robert Peel recruiting Marlott. As he stands on the edge of the Thames contemplating the arrest of some opium smugglers, Marlott makes a shocking discovery. The body of a dead child is washed up on the shore and on further examination of the corpse he is horrified to discover it’s not actually a child but rather a crude assembly of body parts arranged in a grotesque parody of a human form. Eeuggh! Filming begins in Northern Ireland in January. Anticipation factor: ★★★★½ SS-GB, BBC1 So, after fading from the cultural landscape in recent years, the brilliant Len Deighton is back. The Brit, now 85, created Harry Palmer and wrote superb thrillers from the 1960s on.

He is still writing some interesting books (most recently 2012’s ebook James Bond: My Long and Eventful Search for His Father). Now, the BBC is set to drag the master back into the limelight with this five-part dramatisation of one of his most audacious yarns. It is set in the 1940s and imagines a post-war world in which the Nazis have won the Battle of Britain and London is under German occupation. Archer is a Scotland Yard detective working under the SS and facing the dilemma of whether to collaborate or join the resistance. Written by the writers of the recent Daniel Craig Bond movies, Robert Wade and Neal Purvis, who say: ‘Len Deighton’s SS-GB is a brilliant tale of espionage that dares to think the unthinkable, and we are very excited to be adapting it for television.’ 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★½ The Casual Vacancy, BBC1 The Beeb joins forces with HBO in the States to make what is one of the most anticipated mini-series of 2015 – of JK Rowling’s first novel following the astronomically successful Harry Potter series. And what a cast!

Michael Gambon, Julia McKenzie, Keeley Hawes, Monica Dolan and Rory Kinnear are the headliners. It’s a three-parter, focusing on events in Pagford, a seemingly idyllic English village, following the death of a local councillor. Behind the pretty façade, however, is a town at war: rich with poor, teenagers with their parents, wives with their husbands, teachers with their pupils. 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★½ Cuffs, BBC1 This certainly looks like being one of the major new cop series of 2015. Filling the distinctive boots of the regular weekday cop serial once worn by The Bill, this police show will go out every weekday evening at 8pm – BBC1’s first new drama in this slot for more than eight years. Set in Brighton, it will focus on the relationships between uniforms and detectives, and how they all deal with an overstretched and under-resourced job. Written by Julie Gearey, who also wrote the excellent character-driven stories of Prisoners’ Wives. She says: ‘As a massive fan of cop shows, I’m thrilled to create a new ensemble police series for BBC1.

Intimate and realistic, we’ll be right on the shoulders of our cops as we follow them into every corner of lives in which work pressures don’t end at the station door.’ 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★½ Bob Odenkirk returns as Saul Goodman Better Call Saul, AMC Bob Odenkirk, Jonathan Banks The much anticipated prequel to Breaking Bad, with Bob Odenkirk breathing fresh life into Saul Goodman, his slippery lawyer character from the landmark series. The good news is that Vince Gilligan, the showrunner behind BB, has developed the new show with Peter Gould. Gilligan has said: ‘I like the idea of a lawyer show in which the main lawyer will do anything it takes to stay out of a court of law. He’ll settle on the courthouse steps, whatever it takes to stay out of the courtroom. That would be fun—I would like that.’ Aaron Paul, who was brilliant as BB‘s Jesse Pinkman, has said he is in talks with Gilligan over some guest appearances. It hits the screen in the US on Sunday, 8 February, 2015. No news yet of its UK home.

See the taster below… Anticipation factor: ★★★★ Black Work, ITV Sheridan Smith, Matthew McNulty, Douglas Henshall, Geraldine James, Phil Davis Sheridan Smith plays policewoman Jo Gillespie, whose world is thrown into turmoil when husband Ryan (Kenny Doughty), an undercover policeman, is shot dead in mysterious circumstances. She sets out to discover who murdered him and has to confront difficult truths about her family life and her marriage to Ryan. 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★ The Last Panthers, Sky Atlantic Samantha Morton, Tahar Rahim, John Hurt Another major new drama from Sky Atlantic – and another cracking cast. It’s written by award-winning Jack Thorne, of Skins, Glue and This Is England renown, and will be directed by Johan Renck of Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead fame. Phew! It opens with a daring diamond heist before delving into the dark heart of Europe where a shadowy alliance of gangsters and ‘banksters’ now rules. Samantha Morton is Naomi, a British loss adjustor charged with recovering the stolen diamonds whatever the cost. John Hurt portrays Tom, her nefarious boss.

Also in pursuit is a French-Algerian policeman Khalil, played by Tahar Rahim, one of France’s most talented actors. 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★ The Secret Agent, BBC1 A three-part adaptation of Joseph Conrad’s novel by Bafta-winning writer Tony Marchant, the man behind the excellent Garrow’s Law. London, 1886. Unbeknown to his loyal wife Winnie, Soho shopkeeper Verloc works as a secret agent for the Russian government. Angry that Britain harbours violent anarchists, the Russians coerce Verloc into planting a bomb that will provoke the authorities into cracking down on these extremists. Caught between the Russians and the British police, Verloc reluctantly draws his own family into a tragic terror plot. Tony Marchant says: ‘Conrad’s depiction of 19th-century terrorists committed to the destruction of the West, with a suicide bomber in their midst, was not only prophetic but is undeniably contemporary and compelling.

Equally it is a heartbreaking story of a family caught up in the political machinations of a world in ferment.’ 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★ Fruity Reels Official Site Providing fans of UK pub-style fruit machines and slots with a comprehensive guide to their favourite games online. One of Us, BBC2 This four-part thriller is written by The Missing‘s Jack Williams and set in the Scottish Highlands.A horrific double murder rocks the lives of two families living side by side in rural Scotland. But instead of focusing on the investigation, One Of Us explores the fallout for the grieving relatives, and the dark consequences that threaten to shatter their lives… 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★½ Undercover (working title), BBC1 Political thriller about a woman who is about to become Britain’s first black Director of Public Prosecutions. Just as she is about to enter the public spotlight, she discovers her husband has a secret side – is it an affair, or something more sinister?

Writer Peter Moffat says: ‘After immersing myself in WW1 and the 1920s in The Village I am relishing the prospect of returning to the contemporary British political landscape to look at where we stand and how we got here. Undercover is a thriller about identity, trust and the struggle to lead a morally principled personal and professional life, while working up close with the police, press, politicians and criminals who have so corrupted and damaged public life over the last 20 years.’ 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★½ Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death, Sky1 Ashley Jensen A press officer turned detective and a killer quiche are at the heart of this Christmas crime fest. PR Ashley Jensen turns sleuth whizz Agatha moves from London to the Cotswolds to begin a new dream life. To immerse herself in local society she enters the annual quiche-making competition – only to end up the suspect in a murder investigation. Ashley Jensen explains: ‘Agatha Raisin is a strong forthright, independent, driven, successful woman, who is both funny and flawed, a real woman of our time.

Determined to fulfil her lifelong dream and in doing so she discovers that all is not quite as rosy as she had anticipated. Undeterred she finds a new purpose in her life.’ The two-hour film is based on the novel series by MC Beaton, creator of Hamish Macbeth. December 2014 Anticipation factor: ★★★½ Arthur & George ITV Martin Clunes Three-parter based on Julian Barnes’ novel and focusing on a fascinating true series of events in the life of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Martin Clunes will play the celebrated novelist and physician who created the detective Sherlock Holmes. Conan Doyle recaptures his zest for life, following the death of wife, Louisa, by pursuing and challenging a notorious miscarriage of justice. It is the case of George Edalji, a solicitor and the son of Hampshire vicar the Reverend Shapurji Edalji and his wife, Charlotte. George has served seven years in Pentonville Prison for allegedly mutilating animals and sending threatening letters, a series of offences which have become known as The Great Wyrley Rippings.

2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★ Top of the Lake, BBC2 The first series, set in New Zealand and starring Mad Men‘s Elisabeth Moss, did not create a huge stir when it went out in 2013, but there is no denying its quality or that it was an absorbing series and production. Well, Academy Award-winning director Jane Campion is returning – as writer – with a six-part follow-up, this time set in Sydney, Australia… Anticipation factor: ★★★★ London Spy, BBC2 Ben Wishaw A five-part thriller created by novelist Tom Robb Smith, who wrote the superb hit novel Child 44 (which is being made into a movie for next year with Tom Hardy and Gary Oldman). This is about an innocent and young romantic drawn into the dangerous world of espionage.

Anticipation factor: ★★★★ No Offence, C4 Joanna Scanlan, Alexandra Roach, Elaine Cassidy, Will Mellor Joanna Scanlan (The Thick of It, Getting On), Alexandra Roach (The Iron Lady, Utopia) and Elaine Cassidy (The Paradise, Harper’s Island) star as the unorthodox crack team of cops at the heart of Paul Abbott’s new series – an outrageous police procedural series from the writer of Shameless and State of Play. Set in a crumbling police station on the wrong side of Manchester, it aims to shock, move and have audiences laughing. It’s a seven-parter, with an additional extended opening episode. 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★ Safe House, ITV Chistopher Eccleston, Marsha Thomason, Paterson Joseph Four-parter about a married couple, Robert and Katy, who are asked by close friend and police officer to turn their remote guest house into a safe house. Their first ‘guests’ are a family in fear of their lives after they are violently attacked by someone who claims to know them.

For Robert, protecting the family resurrects fears and anxieties bound up in a terrifying night 18 months previously… Inspired by a real couple, Safe House sounds like an intriguing prospect. Anticipation factor: ★★★★ The Night Manager, BBC This sounds like another big, prestigious drama for 2015. It’s a six-part adaptation of a John Le Carré book, focusing on the intelligence community and the secret arms trade. It’s a fusion of spy story and tale of organised crime. At its centre is a man called Jonathan Pine, who tries to infiltrate the inner circle of a lethal gangster, but can only do so by becoming a criminal himself. Anticipation factor: ★★★★ The Trials of Jimmy Rose, ITV Ray Winstone, Amanda Redman Winstone is Jimmy Rose, a notorious armed robber who has managed to make crime pay. However, the luxury home and belongings have come at a cost to his family life. Over the years he’s spent more time in prison than with the love of his life, Jackie, their two adult children, Jason and Julie and grandchildren Elliot, Ellie and India. Consequently, their happy distant memories of Jimmy have been shattered by years of abandonment.

Emerging from his latest stretch inside, Jimmy does not get the hoped-for warm welcome home… 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★★ Endeavour 3 Shaun Evans Writer Russell Lewis has done such a good job of lovingly and intelligently building Endeavour Morse’s back-story in this popular Inspector Morse prequel that it’s hard to imagine it not being recommissioned. And with all the cliffhangers in the climax of the second series, to not have the series return would be a crime in itself. The new series will be set in 1967, picking up from the dramatic finale that saw Morse placed in police custody, framed for a murder he didn’t commit, and DI Fred Thursday’s life hanging in the balance after being shot in the chest. Russell Lewis says: ‘Endeavour ’67… Pepper – Piper – Purple Haze… As “Oxford’s finest” encounter friends and foes both old and new, our next quartet of mysteries will take the audience on a psychedelic Summer of Love fairground ride, filled with twists and turns, shrieks and scares.

For something wicked this way comes…’ 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★½ The Forgotten, ITV This six-parter focuses on a cold murder case of 39 years ago. With the discovery of a young man’s skeleton underneath the cellar at a property in Arlington Crescent, a new police investigation turns back the years. The modern-day police team – DCI Cassie Stuart and DI Sunil ‘Sunny’ Khan – unravel long-forgotten secrets, which will have a dramatic impact on their investigation and the lives of four potential suspects. The slow revelation of these secrets as Cassie and Sunny hunt for the killer will alter the dynamic of the families and their loved ones forever. But who was the murdered boy and why was he staying in 27 Arlington Crescent? And what happened in 1976 to cause his murder? Anticipation factor: ★★★½ Luther, BBC1 Idris Elba You can’t keep a good character down. Not only is Idris Elba talking up the prospects of a Luther movie series , but he is certainly returning to the Beeb for a 2 x 60-minute special.

Of the genius detective with violent passions, his creator Neil Cross says: ‘Ever since we said goodbye to John Luther on Southwark Bridge, there’s hardly been a minute when I didn’t wonder what happened next. So I decided to find out. We’re putting the band back together – Luther is coming back where he belongs. Back to the BBC. Back to London. And back to work.’ Luther was something of an acquired taste, being at times silly and rather nasty. But Idris Elba is one of the most charismatic performers on TV, and for the series’ devotees, this should be manna… 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★ Foyle’s War, ITV Michael Kitchen, Honeysuckle Weeks, Daniel Weyman, Ellie Haddington Three new post-war mysteries for writer Anthony Horowitz’s old warhorse. The stories will explore the world of the American and German businesses that were accused of fuelling Hitler’s war machine and will reflect on the web of promises to the Jews to create a state of Israel in British Palestine.

The major blight of postwar Britain, the Black Market, will be a subject, too, as will some of the darkest secrets from operations conducted by the British Special Operations Executive during WW2. Watch out for a guest appearance from Frasier’s John Mahoney. Anticipation factor: ★★★ Vera 5, ITV Brenda Blethyn, Kenny Doughty Four new episodes based on the characters created by novelist Ann Cleeves. Filming has already been under way in the North East for these stories, with Kenny Doughty joining the cast as Vera’s new sidekick, DS Aiden Healy. 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★ DCI Banks 4 Stephen Tompkinson, Andrea Lowe, Caroline Katz He’s back for another six-parter. The first story, What Will Survive, revolves around a young woman found buried alive and her connections to a man, his autistic son and a family that seem to have silenced the town. We’ll also see Banks’s life turned upside-down by tragic events in his own family. Home will deal with an unfolding tragedy as a well-loved young maths teacher is run over deliberately by a car outside his school.

His Muslim girlfriend suspects her own father and cousin, who disapprove of the relationship. In the final story, Ghosts, Helen’s past comes back to haunt her when an old flame from another police force implies he is being framed. He begs for her help shortly before he is killed… 2015 Anticipation factor: ★★★ And as for 2016… Mark Gatiss, a writer and star in Sherlock, has already started teasing devotees of the drama by promising tragedy and adventure in the fourth series. Plus, it seems Moriarty could make some kind of return from the grave. A possible Christmas special for 2015… Even more mired in rumour is the return of True Detecitve – it seems Mad Men‘s Elisabeth Moss won’t be in the cast. Suits star Abigail Spencer and Kelly Reilly have been talked up to play in the writer Nic Pizzolatto’s next tale of ‘hard women and bad men’. Rachel McAdams is also in the running. Taylor Kitsch and Colin Farrell look like being the guys… And, finally, expect to be reading a lot about the next instalment of Twin Peaks.

David Lynch and Mark Frost returning to the twisted world they created in 1990’s landmark series is brilliant news. See the trailer on CrimeTimePreview and start following the Twin Peaks news here … Happy viewing! Painswick, Cotswold residents complain over JK Rowling's The Casual Vacancy TV set | Daily Mail Online comments Its quaint cottages, picturesque gardens and towering church spire have earned Painswick the title of ‘Queen of the Cotswolds’. So it’s perhaps of little surprise that residents of the quiet village reacted with fury when a racy lingerie shop opened on their high street. But in an unusual twist to the tale, it was revealed that the risqué boutique of underwear was part of the set for The Casual Vacancy, one of the BBC’s most anticipated dramas of 2015.

Outraged residents in Painswick, in the Cotswolds complained about the sex-shop film set for the new BBC adaptation of JK Rowling's book, A Casual Vacancy, starring Keeley Hawes, right Residents complained to the Parish Council unaware the 'store' was a film set for the adaptation The drama is based on The Casual Vacancy, written by JK Rowling, pictured, published in 2012 The cast of high-profile adaptation of JK Rowling’s bestselling book, have spoken of how the fake shop was branded a ‘disgrace’ but also how some sheepish residents came in to browse the aisles, only to be turned away by the film crew. And Miss Marple star Julia McKenzie, 73, said the three-part series could be the last time fans see her on screen for several months, revealing she has had to turn down work after breaking her knee. The 2012 novel from the Harry Potter author, 49, tells the story of the fictional village of Pagford. Its dark themes of drug addiction, sexual abuse and suicide saw it sell one million copies in its first three weeks.

But it was the lingerie store of character Samantha Mollison, played by Keeley Hawes, that drew the ire of Painswick residents when their village became the backdrop for the book’s twisting tale. RELATED ARTICLES Share this article Share Speaking at a preview of the series, director Johnny Campbell revealed the locals’ anger at thinking a sex shop had opened in their quiet streets. Although, he also admitted the makeshift store did get some enquiring visitors. He said: ‘They did mistake it for the real thing and complained about it at the local parish council meeting, they said it was a disgrace. ‘But there were a couple of occasions when we were filming and an old lady, white hair and a stick, was walking past looking in the window. We said, “Please excuse....”, she said, “Oh no, I’ve got all that stuff.” ‘Someone came in, they thought there was a sale on so we found people looking round at some of the stuff, it was amusing.’ The adaptation which stars Keeley Hawes, left and Julia McKenzie, right, will be broadcast next month Unlike the fictional Pagford, where drug addiction and murky local politics seem to be the norm, Painswick paints a very different picture.

Built largely of stone from a local quarry, it is one of the best preserved villages in the Cotswolds and sits in an area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, one of 38 such areas across England and Wales. With a population of barely over 2,000 it is a quiet community but one that is full of history. Its parish church, which dates back nearly 1,000 years, gave refuge to the Roundheads during the English Civil War. There are reportedly 99 yew trees growing in the courtyard, with legend claiming the Devil refuses to let a one hundredth take root. But even the charms of Painswick do not seem to be enough to lure Miss Marple star Julia McKenzie, who plays Shirley Mollison in The Casual Vacancy, back to rural life. She quit the countryside for London some years ago and claimed at Monday’s screening to have no regrets at abandoning the small village lifestyle. She said: ‘I lived in the Cotswolds for about 14 years, I lived in Burford which was actually one of the areas where we filmed. I can tell you there’s a lot of politics in village life.

‘In my particular village for instance, there were some very wealthy people who wanted to buy a new notice board. The arguments about whether it should have a front of glass or on this side or over that side - they gave up because they didn’t want to buy it any more. They don’t have anything else to do but keep an eye on other people. It’s very political on villages.’ Her turn in the series may be the last time she graces screens for several months following breaking her knee at the end of last year. Speaking about the injury for the first time, she said: ‘I broke my knee cap, London streets are not paved with gold I’m afraid, they are pitfalls. I went straight over with an arm full of shopping in November. ‘I thought it would just get better, I thought it was just swollen and I’d be all right. But it wasn’t and I had actually fractured my knee cap. ‘For the last two months I’ve been in a leg brace with iron bits and good knows what, sitting with my foot up all the time. I can’t do with out my crutch at the moment, I’ve lost my confidence a bit.

‘I’m just about to start physio, I’m doing some gentle work now and then I’ll go into about three months of physio. I can’t bend it, it’s so sore. ‘I’ve had to turn down a couple of things which might have taken me into the year but it’s ok. Half the time I actually look for an excuse not to work these days.’ The first episode of The Casual Vacancy will broadcast on BBC1 on Sunday February 15 at 9pm. The drama was filmed over the summer in picturesque Northleach, pictured Is 2015 the best year for telly EVER? | Daily Mail Online Like turkey sandwiches and stale mince pies, there’s only so many classic Christmas repeats you can watch. But don’t despair — 2015 promises to deliver the best feast of telly ever. Here, our TV critic Christopher Stevens gives you his guide to everything great that’s coming up this year, from Booker-winning costume drama to innovative comedy, and taut thrillers to addictive mysteries... Broadchurch The most hotly anticipated drama for years gets 2015 off to a cracking start with the return of Broadchurch, starring Olivia Colman and David Tennant.

How hotly anticipated? Well, a Twitter campaign whipped fans into a frenetic state merely for the launch of the trailer, with the slogan ‘Same Town, New Secrets’. By the time the ITV show starts next week, Britain could be in Broadchurch meltdown. Scroll down for video Broadchurch, the most hotly anticipated drama for years gets 2015, off to a cracking start with the return of Broadchurch, starring Olivia Colman and David Tennant Writer Chris Chibnall had suggested that it might not be a crime drama second time round, but that looks like a red herring — in the trailer, Tennant’s character, Detective Inspector Alec Hardy is seen urging his former Detective Sergeant, Ellie Miller, played by Colman, to work with him again: ‘I can’t do it on my own!’ Details of the plot are under wraps, but it is thought to centre on the disappearance of two girls. New faces include cinema star Charlotte Rampling and Eve Myles, last seen as district nurse Frankie.

ITV Monday, 9pm Poldark Aidan Turner, last seen as the young dwarf Kili in The Hobbit, is the brooding Captain Ross Poldark Poldark was one of the best-loved series of the Seventies, with its wild, windswept Cornish landscapes and even more wild and windswept romances. It’s the swashbuckling tale of a British officer, believed dead, who returns from the American War of Independence in the 18th century to discover his boyhood enemy has snatched away his fiancee. Aidan Turner, last seen as the young dwarf Kili in The Hobbit, is the brooding Captain Ross Poldark, and Eleanor Tomlinson is the rescued waif Demelza — a role made famous by Angharad Rees, who died in 2012. Jack Farthing is the dastardly George Warleggan. The original Poldark series, starring Robin Ellis, was an unabashed bodice-ripper. Ross and Demelza loved and fought with equal passion, and the script was anything but politically correct — Ellis would snarl lines such as, ‘It’s dangerous . . .

it’s damned unpredictable — like a woman!’ Will BBC1 have the nerve to be half as racy this time? BBC1, March Wolf Hall Author Hilary Mantel has won two Booker prizes for her novels about King Henry VIII’s wily adviser, Thomas Cromwell. The books have been adapted with a superstar cast: Wolf Hall boasts Homeland’s Damian Lewis as the monarch, Shakespearean giant Mark Rylance as Cromwell, Sherlock’s Mark Gatiss as his enemy Bishop Stephen Gardiner and veteran Jonathan Pryce as Cardinal Wolsey. Other cast include Jessica Raine from Call The Midwife and Bernard Hill. BBC2, from January 21 Wolf Hall boasts Homeland’s Damian Lewis as the monarch. Author Hilary Mantel has won two Booker prizes for her novels about King Henry VIII’s wily adviser, Thomas Cromwell Ordinary Lies Michelle Keegan’s departure from Coronation Street, after her character Tina was murdered, was one of the TV stories of the year. Her starring role in Ordinary Lies on BBC1 is set to be a highlight of 2015, with a script by Danny Brocklehurst, who wrote this year’s gangster drama The Driver.

The darkly comic drama is set in a car showroom, and co-stars Mackenzie Crook, Jason Manford and Danny Kelly (pictured with Keegan). All the characters have secrets, and they all tell lies to protect themselves . . . but as the lies get bigger, their lives unravel. BBC1, February The darkly comic drama Ordinary lies is set in a car showroom, and co-stars Mackenzie Crook, Jason Manford and Danny Kelly (pictured with Michell Keegan) Indian Summers Julie Walters, whose career was celebrated with a Bafta Fellowship award this year, is the star of a major serial on Channel Four. Julie Walters, whose career was celebrated with a Bafta Fellowship award this year, is the star of Indian Summers, a major serial on Channel Four She plays Cynthia , a grand British society lady in Simla, northern India, during the last days of the Raj. Set in 1932 against Himalayan scenery, Indian Summers is a ten-part saga in the tradition of The Jewel In The Crown. Patrick Malahide, Lord Glendenning in the BBC1 costume drama The Paradise, co-stars as the Viceroy.

The story traces the collapse of British rule and the emergence of Indian independence, seen from both sides, and opens with an assassination attempt — a dramatic beginning to a torrid tale. Channel 4, February Black Work Sheridan Smith won nationwide acclaim for her brilliant portrayal of Cilla Black last year. She had proved herself as an actress, but only her West End fans knew quite how powerful her voice was... until she opened up on Anyone Who Had A Heart. Sheridan Smith tackles a very different role in Black Work as policewoman Jo Gillespie whose life is turned inside-out when her husband, undercover copper Ryan, is killed The question is, what can she do to top that? Wisely, she tackles a very different role in Black Work as policewoman Jo Gillespie whose life is turned inside-out when her husband, undercover copper Ryan, is killed. As Jo hunts his murderers, she discovers shocking secrets about his life and their marriage, which threaten to taint her family. Matthew McNulty, Douglas Henshall, Geraldine James and Phil Davis co-star, and the script is by Matt Charman, who wrote Our Zoo.

ITV, July Partners in Crime Agatha Christie’s infallible detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple are always in vogue, but her married sleuths Tommy and Tuppence Beresford are much less famous — they have barely been on British telly since the early Eighties (there was a French adaptation in 2005, but that doesn’t count). David Walliams and Jessica Raine play married sleuths Tommy and Tuppence Beresford inAgatha Christie's Partners In Crime, a six-part series on BBC1 with a Cold War backdrop, set in the Fifties Now comic actor David Walliams in his first period role, and Jessica Raine, are bringing the characters to life for Partners In Crime, a six-part series on BBC1 with a Cold War backdrop, set in the Fifties. Walliams says, ‘I was first drawn to the delicious notion of a married couple solving crimes together, and I realised the novels are among Christie’s very best work.’ The first episode, The Secret Adversary, is scheduled to coincide with the 125th anniversary of the writer’s birth.

BBC1 is also remaking And Then There Were None, Christie’s brilliantly plotted murder tale that traps ten characters on an island with an unseen killer. Partners In Crime, BBC1, December Happy Valley This outstanding crime serial by Sally Wainwright is tipped to win a BAFTA for its star, Sarah Lancashire, and she will return for a second series as the divorced police sergeant Catherine Cawood, with Siobhan Finneran as her sister Clare once again. BBC1, autumn Happy Valley: This outstanding crime serial by Sally Wainwright is tipped to win a BAFTA for its star, Sarah Lancashire Banished The story of the first convicts to be transported to Australia is told in Banished by Jimmy McGovern, who created Cracker and The Accused. MyAnna Buring, Julian Rhind-Tutt and Russell Tovey are caught up in a battle for survival in a 19th-century penal colony, where food is scarce and tensions simmer between the convicts and the soldiers who guard them.

BBC2, April MyAnna Buring, Julian Rhind-Tutt and Russell Tovey are caught up in a battle for survival in a 19th-century penal colony in Banished The Night Manager Another acclaimed novelist whose stories make great TV is John le Carre. But shockingly, the author of Tinker Tailor and The Spy Who Came in From the Cold has not seen one of his tales adapted for television since 1991 and A Murder Of Quality. Now his crime novel The Night Manager is being made by the BBC in collaboration with U.S. cable broadcaster AMC. The six-part serial will star Hugh Laurie (right) and Tom Hiddleston as an arms dealer and the ex-soldier seeking vengeance who sets up a sting operation to catch him. BBC, date to be decided Jonathan Strange & Mr Norell Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is a grown-up tale of wizards and dark magic, set in Napoleonic England, published by first-time author Susanna Clarke. In the TV version of this massive tome, Eddie Marsan and Bertie Carvel play rival spell-casters — one a natural magician with a devil-may-care charm, the other a fusty academic who taught himself to weave magic from books.

The BBC adaptation is spread over six hour-long episodes. BBC1, spring Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is a grown-up tale of wizards and dark magic, set in Napoleonic England, published by first-time author Susanna Clarke.In the TV version of this massive tome, Eddie Marsan (right in picture) and Bertie Carvel (left) play rival spell-casters The Casual Vacancy Despite some awful reviews, J.K. Rowling’s first adult novel, The Casual Vacancy, proved a bestseller. If you haven’t read it yourself, a three-part BBC1 mini-series will give you the chance to decide whether the author should have stuck to children’s books. Michael Gambon, Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in the later Harry Potter films, stars as Howard, owner of a deli in the West Country village of Pagford. Miss Marple star Julia McKenzie is his wife, and Rory Kinnear (a regular in the Bond movies) co-stars. The plot centres on a parish council election that opens up old wounds. BBC1, February Despite some awful reviews, J.K. Rowling’s first adult novel, The Casual Vacancy, proved a bestseller.

Michael Gambon, Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in the later Harry Potter films, stars as Howard, owner of a deli in the West Country village of Pagford 1864 Fans of Borgen, the Scandi-noir political drama, will be delighted to see its star Sidse Babett Knudsen (right) return in 1864, a period drama about Denmark’s attempt to claim the state of Schleswig 150 years ago. The political row led to war with Prussia and Austria, and almost ignited a European conflict — half a century before World War I. Lars Mikkelsen, who was the blackmailer Charles Augustus Milverton in Sherlock, co-stars. BBC4, spring The trials of Jimmy Rose Ray Winstone stars as an armed robber who has spent more than half his life in prison, and is trying to rebuild his marriage with wife Jackie (Amanda Redman) in The Trials Of Jimmy Rose (ITV, June).

And in another crime series, the writer behind the acclaimed political thriller State Of Play, Paul Abbott, tackles comedy-drama in No Offence (Channel 4, May), with Joanna Scanlan, Alexandra Roach and Elaine Cassidy as a police team based in a dilapidated station, who use inventive methods to reduce the crime rate. ITV, June Ray Winstone stars as an armed robber who has spent more than half his life in prison, in The Trials Of Jimmy Rose PS: And here's two classics for kids Two children’s favourites from different generations are being remade for CBBC. Dangermouse ran in the Eighties, with David Jason as the voice of the secret agent with an eyepatch who lived in a pillarbox. In the new show, Pointless host Alexander Armstrong will voice Dangermouse (out in September). The Clangers return with Michael Palin as the narrator. And purists needn’t worry. The new Clangers (out in June) uses classic stop-motion techniques, like the original. Two children’s favourites from different generations are being remade for CBBC. Dangermouse (left) and The Clangers (right) return with Michael Palin as the narrator

Question: Which recent BBC TV drama set in Pagford opens with the death of a parish councillor?
Answer: THE CASUAL VACANCY